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In the past week, Bitcoin took a dramatic tumble after its historic 1,400pc rally. The digital currency eventually rebounded only hours later but it left Bitcoin investors reeling with fears that the bubble had finally burst.

While data scientists, software developers and financial engineers are busy at work on more complex algorithmic trading platforms to better predict – and optimise – this volatility, they may be looking in the wrong place. Software code and computer science might provide part of the answers but the rest can be found through a surprising source: the humanities.

Bitcoin, like any currency, is really just an expression of mutual trust in cultural norms and practices. It is a...